UMass searching for leadership, charisma in next football head coach

AP photoMark Whipple, who coached in Amherst from 1998-2003, is a popular figure among UMass football fans.

University of Massachusetts athletic director John McCutcheon isn’t just looking for a football coach, he’s looking for a charismatic leader.

The 29th coach of the Minutemen will not have to have head coaching experience at the Football Bowl Subdivision level, but he is going to have to have a clear vision for the future of the program and be able to rally the fans and alumni who have been disillusioned by the last three years.

“I don’t think there is one particular description of a perfect candidate, but definitely we want someone who has the energy and charisma that can be the face of this program through this transition,” McCutcheon said.

“I-A experience would be a very valuable asset, head coaching experience would be a very valuable asset, but if they didn’t have one thing and perhaps were stronger in other areas, that wouldn’t preclude us from looking at a particular candidate.”

Whoever the Minutemen pick to succeed Kevin Morris, who was let go Monday after a 16-17 record over three years, he will earn more now than he would have a year ago.

Based on USA Today’s salary database for FBS head coaches, Mid-American Conference coaches are making $60,000 more in 2011 than in 2010.

The average MAC salary for a head coach was $317,000 a year ago, and that has jumped to $378,000. USA Today did not have the salary for Temple coach Steve Addazio for 2011, but it was $513,000 for former coach Al Golden in 2010, so that was used to calculate the 2011 salaries.

McCutcheon said UMass will pay a salary competitive with that of the other MAC schools, which have produced some recent successes in the coaching ranks.

Jerry Kill went from Northern Illinois to Minnesota last year, while Golden left Temple for Miami (Fla.).

Then there’s the case of Michael Haywood, who went from 1-11 in his first year at Miami of Ohio to 10-4 and MAC Coach of the Year the next season.

That earned him a hiring at Pittsburgh, but two weeks later he was fired when he was arrested for domestic assault.

The charges have since been dropped and Haywood has a lawsuit pending against Pitt. His side of the story, which he says Pitt never asked to hear, is that he was just protecting his son from the boy’s intoxicated mother and no violence occurred.

Haywood has since been on the job hunt, his name mentioned recently for the opening at Tulane. His name could even pop up in Amherst.

Of course, the most commonly heard names for the UMass job are Mark Whipple and Don Brown, the two former coaches who brought the Minutemen the most success in the last two decades.

Whipple is the quarterbacks coach for the Cleveland Browns and Brown is the defensive coordinator at the University of Connecticut. Both are in their first year with their respective teams.

New Mexico interim head coach George Barlow was on UMass’ short list three years ago. At the time, Barlow was the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator at James Madison.

Barlow has spent the last three years as the defensive coordinator for the Lobos, but when head coach Mike Locksley was fired mid-season, Barlow replaced him on an interim basis.

New Mexico recently signed former Notre Dame coach Bob Davie to a five-year deal to be the next head coach of the Lobos, so Barlow’s status in New Mexico is uncertain.

Former UMass wide receiver and assistant coach Neal Brown’s name is often brought up as a candidate. He interviewed three years ago when he was the offensive coordinator at Troy State.

Now he is in his second season as the offensive coordinator at Texas Tech and may already be out of the price range.

According to USA Today’s FBS coaches’ salary database from 2010, Brown was making $355,000 at Texas Tech, which would likely put him at the very highest end of what UMass would offer, if not out of reach already.

Then again, it is a head coaching job and concessions are sometimes made.